Device ownership transfer from a network

ABSTRACT

A home relationship is established between a device and a network by storing an ownership record in the device that identifies the network, and storing in the network a device identifier that identifies the device. Thereafter, communication is established between the device and the network. The ownership record is then transmitted from the network to the device, and automatic access to the device is granted to the network once the device verifies the transmitted ownership record against the ownership record stored in the device. In addition, the device identifier is transmitted from the device to the network, and automatic access to the network is granted to the device once the network verifies the transmitted device identifier against the device identifier stored in the network.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a divisional of co-pending U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 12/409,775, entitled, “Device Ownership TransferFrom A Network” filed Mar. 24, 2009, which is a divisional of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/872,739, entitled “Device OwnershipTransfer From a Network” filed on Jun. 21, 2004 (now U.S. Pat. No.7,530,098 issued May 5, 2009,) both of which are commonly owned withthis application, the entire disclosures of which are here incorporatedby reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to computer networks, and moreparticularly to a method and system for establishing a home relationshipbetween a mobile device and a network, and for transferring ownershipinformation from the network to the device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A wireless LAN is a local area network that transmits over the air.Typically, one or more wireless base stations, which are also referredto as access points, are wired to an Ethernet network, while wirelessadapters are either built into or attached to client devices. The accesspoints and the wireless devices communicate via radio frequency over anarea of several hundred feet through walls and other barriers. If thereare multiple access points as in a corporation, for example, thenroaming devices can be handed-off from one access point to another. Oneexample of a wireless LAN standard today is 802.11.

For short distances between two devices, a wireless personal areanetwork (PAN) may be used, such as Bluetooth. Bluetooth is an openstandard for short-range transmission of digital voice and data betweenlocal devices, such as laptops, PDAs, imaging devices, phones, anddesktop devices. Bluetooth supports point-to-point and multi-pointapplications, and has a range of 10 meters up to 100 meters with a powerboost. Infrared transmission (IrDA) may also be used for very shortdistances between two devices, however, IrDA requires line of sitebetween the two devices, while Bluetooth uses non-directional radiowaves that can transmit through walls and other barriers.

One application for a wireless LAN is in the home for connecting two ormore computers/devices. A home LAN is often the same Ethernet networkfound in companies, except that the home network is typically configuredas one network, whereas a company may have many subnetworks for trafficand security purposes.

Not only is the number of wireless mobile devices being introduced tothe market steadily increasing, but the types of devices equipped withwireless technology is also growing. For example, Bluetooth-enabledcamcorders are now available. Currently, each wireless device, such as acamcorder or digital camera, is designed to work with any deviceconnected to it that has appropriate connectivity, such as softwareand/or hardware drivers. Devices can be removed from a location, andmoved to another location, and be set up to operate with no regard todevice ownership. However, there is no knowledge or concept of an“owner” within a device. Thus, device theft is highly profitable, withlittle or no barrier to full use of a device by the new “owner.”Electronic devices are widely available on the black market in the formof stolen goods. There is no operational mechanism to prevent full useby non-owners.

Accordingly, there is a need for a method and system for implementingand transferring device ownership in network devices in a manner thatprovides a barrier to device theft. The present invention addresses sucha need.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a method and system for device ownershiptransfer. A home relationship is established between a device and anetwork by storing an ownership record in the device that identifies thenetwork, and storing in the network a device identifier that identifiesthe device. Thereafter, communication is established between the deviceand the network. The ownership record is then transmitted from thenetwork to the device, and automatic access to the device is granted tothe network once the device verifies the transmitted ownership recordagainst the ownership record stored in the device. In addition, thedevice identifier is transmitted from the device to the network, andautomatic access to the network is granted to the device once thenetwork verifies the transmitted device identifier against the deviceidentifier stored in the network.

According to the method and system disclosed herein, once a “home”relationship is established between the device and the network, a secureconnection is established, and is used to pass identifying informationbetween the device and the network. Preferably, the identifyinginformation contains a value that changes over time to ensure that theacknowledge message is always different. In further aspects of thepresent invention, the device can be set to cease functioning until arequest/acknowledge cycle is completed. The request/acknowledge cyclewould use the same secure connection, and also changes over time. Thenwhen the device is connected to a foreign network, which is connected tothe internet, the device imitates the transaction with its home network.If the device has been stolen, the home network can return a negativeacknowledgement, causing the device to cease functioning, and remain inthat state until direct communication is re-established with the homenetwork.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration for usein accordance with the preferred embodiments of the present invention.

FIGS. 2A-2C are flow diagrams illustrating the process for establishinga persistent home relationship between the mobile device and the serverand for negotiating ownership transfer.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating the network process foridentifying the mobile device once ownership of the device has beenestablished.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating the process for revoking ownershipof the device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to establishing a home relationshipbetween a wireless mobile device and to transferring ownershipinformation to the device from the home network. The followingdescription is presented to enable one of ordinary skill in the art tomake and use the invention and is provided in the context of a patentapplication and its requirements. Various modifications to the preferredembodiments and the generic principles and features described hereinwill be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Thus, the presentinvention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown, but isto be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles andfeatures described herein.

In a first aspect of the present invention, a network protocol isprovided that enables the establishment of a home relationship between awireless device and a network server in a wireless network, such that noadditional configuration is required by the user for the device tocommunicate over the network once the relationship has been established.In addition, no password, ID, or security key is required to be enteredinto the device to establish the connection. In a second aspect of thepresent invention, a method for transferring ownership information to amobile device from the home network is provided that prevents full useof the device if it is lost or stolen. In addition, a method fortransferring ownership information also helps determine the location ofthe device for retrieval.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a network configuration for usein accordance with the preferred embodiments of the present invention.In a preferred embodiment, the network configuration 10 comprises awireless home network 12 capable of wireless communication with wirelessmobile devices 14 a-14 n (collectively, mobile devices 14). The homenetwork 12 includes one or more base stations, typically a server 16,coupled to one or more access points (transceivers) 18 through a LANinterface (e.g., Ethernet hub) 20. Other stationary devices 22 may alsobe coupled to the LAN interface 20 over a wired LAN, such as a printer,fax machine, music jukebox, and the like. The LAN interface 20 providesall the devices within the home network access to the Internet 24. Eachmobile device 14 includes a CPU or DSP 30, volatile and non-volatilememory 32 and 34, a network interface 36 that enables wirelesscommunication, and device specific components 38 for carrying out theintended function of the device 14.

In a preferred embodiment, the non-volatile memory 34 is a non-removablememory that is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to extract fromthe unit. In the preferred embodiment, the non-volatile memory 34 mayreside on a system core ASIC, where the ASIC can be a controlled device(available only via warranty service) not readily available on themarket or easily replicated. In addition, both the mobile device 14 andthe network 12 are provided at appropriate points with respectiveprivate/public key pairs 46 and 50 and/or secret keys as part of theprocess of establishing a secure connection, for encrypting some, if notall, of the transmissions between the device 14 and the network 12. Themethod for establishing a secure connection between devices is wellknown and will not be described herein.

The first aspect of the present invention eliminates the need forpasswords, ID's or security keys to be entered into the mobile device toestablish a connection. This aspect of the present invention alsoalleviates the need for users to continually perform manual steps toenable communication between the mobile devices 14 and the home network12 each time one of the mobile devices 14 comes within communicationrange of the network 12. According to the first aspect of the presentinvention, the network server 16 establishes a home relationship with anew device 14 if desired both by the local network administrator and thenew device owner. The relationship established between the network 12and the wireless device 14 is the identification of the network 12 ornetwork server 16 as “home” from the point of view of the wirelessdevice 14; and is the identification of an “owned device” from the pointof view of the network server 16. That is, owned by the server 16 as anextension component of itself, in the same way that Microsoft Windows™recognizes attached plug & play devices.

This special “home” relationship must be established with authorizationfrom both the device owner and the network administrator/owner. It wouldbe undesirable to automatically establish such a relationship viaunderlying wireless protocols because a person's device could becommandeered by any network that the user happens to pass by. However,according to the present invention, the network server 16 distinguishesbetween a new device 14 a—one not “owned” by the network 12, and anowned device 14 b—one in which ownership has already been established.

The focus of the first aspect of the present invention is onestablishing automatic access of the device 14 a to the network 12 andvise versa after a persistent relationship has been established, whilethe focus of the second aspect of the present invention is transferringownership information to the device from the network to prevent use ofthe device on foreign networks by non-owners.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the homerelationship is established between the device 14 and the network 12 bythe network 12 securely transmitting an ownership record 42 to thedevice 14, and by the device 14 securely transmitting its deviceidentification (ID) 40 to the network 12. The ownership record 42includes the necessary information for the device 14 to automaticallyrecognize the “home” network 12, and the owner. Using these two piecesof information, the network 12 and the device 14 automatically recognizeone another. In the preferred embodiment, a secure connection is used toestablish and to revoke network ownership of the device 14.

When the ownership transaction is complete, there is a device 14 recordheld by the network 12, and an ownership record is held by the device14. The device 14 record can be re-created at any time by the device 14from internal resources, in order to transmit to the network 12 forauthentication. Likewise, the ownership record can be re-created at anytime by the network 12 from internal resources, in order to transmit tothe device 14 for authentication. The two-sided authenticationprocess—exchange of both ownership and device ID information forverification in a secure manner—is required to establish the owned or“home” connection between the device 14 and network 12.

Once “owned”, ownership of the device 14 cannot be transferred to athird party until the network 12 “disowns’ the device 14. In order tosecurely disown the device 14, a release command securely transmittedfrom the network 12 must be received by the device 14. In the preferredembodiment, the device 14 user must also manually authorize the releasecommand via some form of interaction with the device 14. Thus, a secureownership acquisition process and secure transfer of ownership isprovided.

In operation, the device 14 is shipped from the factory with theownership record 42 stored in the non-volatile memory 34. This ownershiprecord 42 is initialized by the manufacturer in some way as to indicatethat the device 14 is not yet owned. In an alternative embodiment, therecord can show ownership by the manufacturer. In this case, theownership record may be updated as it travels through various channelsto an end user, such as a distributor and retail store. If ownershiprecords 42 were updated in this manner, some form of automated updatewould be required to reduce cost. This is an unlikely prospect, becauseit requires that the device 14 be powered up. Since most devices 14 areshipped packed carefully in boxes with batteries separated from thedevice 14, the most likely approach is to ship the product such that theownership record indicates the device 14 is un-owned, and rely on othermethods, such as bar codes or embedded chips to track inventory.

When the device 14 is transferred to the end user, typically at a pointof sale, the device 14 ownership record 42 indicates an disowned state,either set by the factory (preferred embodiment), or set by the seller.At the point of sale, end user owner information could be transferredinto the device 14. This action may be facilitated at the point of saleby the seller and by the end user by transferring his ownershipinformation from another mobile device 14 on his person, such as a cellphone or PDA. In this way, the ownership transaction is simplified andtherefore feasible.

In the preferred embodiment, the ownership record is not transferred atpoint of sale, for security reasons that will be described later.Practical reasons include the requirement of the user to open the box,place the batteries in the device 14, and power it up. This alsorequires that the batteries contain sufficient charge to operate theunit. For these reasons, this is not a practical step.

In the preferred embodiment, the ownership record 42 is transferred tothe device 14 by a network 12 owned or controlled by the device 14owner. The preferred embodiment is for this ownership transaction tooccur when the end-user brings the device 14 home, unpacks it, chargesits batteries, powers it up, and connects it (wirelessly or via anetwork 12 interface cable) to the “home” network 12.

Once the server 16 detects the presence of a device 14 a on the network12, it is assumed to be a visitor, unless its device ID 40 is recognizedthrough a pre-established home relationship. One of the ways of dealingwith an unrecognized, and disowned, device 14 a is to automaticallynotify the network administrator/owner, and request that they selectfrom a list what kind of relationship is desired between the device andthe network 12. Once the “home” relationship is established, the device14 b as accepted as an extension of the network 12, with full orspecified access.

If the network owner selects the new device relationship as a “home”relationship, this decision must also be accepted by the user of thedevice 14 a, which is presumed to be the owner. Preferably, thisnotification occurs via some form of interaction with the device 14 aitself. Therefore, once the network administrator defines therelationship he or she is willing to grant the device 14 a, the deviceowner is notified and requested to authorize establishment of therelationship. In the case where both network 12 and device owners areone in the same (e.g., a user buys a camera phone to function with thehome network) the transaction proceeds. In the case that the two ownersare different, both must agree before the transaction proceeds. Thisprevents a network operator from “snagging” a home relationship with adevice that happen to enter their network area, without the permissionof the owner of the device 14 a.

If the device owner accepts the relationship, the specified relationshipis established, and the device 14 is connected to the network 12.Thereafter, when the presence of the device 14 is subsequently detectedby the network 12, the device 14 will be automatically recognized by thenetwork 12 and allowed access with no additional configuration requiredby the user for operation. In addition, the device recognizes thenetwork as home, thus preventing a foreign network from accessing datawithin the device that would typically be allowed from the home network.

This network configuration 10 could be implemented in a home (homenetwork), a corporation, a retail store, or in some other type ofbusiness (corporate or government network). The present invention willbe described in terms of a preferred embodiment of a home network, butthe features apply equally to business and/or government networks. Inthe case of a home network 12, the network administrator is typicallythe owner of the network, and if the same person purchased the newwireless device 14 a, then the network administrator and the device useris one in the same.

FIGS. 2A-2C are flow diagrams illustrating the process for establishinga persistent home relationship between the mobile device 14 and theserver 16 and for negotiating ownership transfer in accordance with apreferred embodiment of the present invention. The process begins whenthe server 16 detects the presence of a device 14 within the active areaof the local network 12 (step 100). In a preferred embodiment, theserver 16 discovers the device 14 when a standard wireless networkprotocol discovery process establishes a restricted connection.

Once the server 16 detects the presence of the device 14, the server 16attempts to recognize the device 14 by requesting information from thedevice 14, device identification 40 (step 102). In a preferredembodiment, the device identification 40 is information by which theserver 16 can uniquely identify the device 14, such as a device ID, orserial number, for example. Referring again to FIG. 1, the device ID 40is preferably stored internally in the device 14 in non-removablenon-volatile memory 34.

Referring again to FIG. 2A, in response to receiving the request, thedevice 14 transmits the device specific information (if available) tothe server 16 (step 104). In the preferred embodiment, the request for,and delivery of the device ID is over a secure connection initiallyestablished between the network 12 and device 14. In addition, thedevice ID may be transmitted in an encrypted message that changes overtime so that they message changes. Randomizing the message in thismanner ensures that a hacker cannot simply “sniff” encrypted value andreproduce it to fake an authorized device. Once the server 16 receivesthe device identification 40, the server 16 searches for theidentification 40 among previously stored device identifications (step106). In a preferred embodiment, the stored device identifications arekept in an “owned device” database 44, although a simple table or listcould also be used. If the identification 40 is found, then the device14 is recognized by the server 16 (step 108), and is granted access tothe network 12 commiserate with stored preferences.

If the identification 40 is either not received or is not found in theowned device database 44, then the device 14 a is unrecognized by theserver 16 (step 110). The server 16 then notifies the networkadministrator using a method specified set in network preferences andrequests authorization from the network administrator/owner to grant thedevice 14 a access to the network 12 (step 112).

The owner can be notified by the home network 12 via one or more of thedevices 22 attached to the network 12, such as an HDTV system, a highfidelity sound system, PC's located at various places inside the home oroffice, a pager or cell phone, or by special devices attached to thenetwork 12 for this exclusive purpose. The notification may be throughany audible or visual signal, such as a bell, and audio file beingplayed over a sound system, a blinking light, or some other form ofattention-getting signal. An electronic notification may be sent to amobile device owned by the administrator, such as placing a call to theowner cell phone (text message or synthetic/recorded voice), or sendinga message to the owner's pager, PDA, or messaging device. Of course, anycombination of the above may also be used.

The network administrator/owner, recognizing the signal, would thenaccess a control center for the home network 12 to select a course ofaction to be taken by the network 12 in regard to the device 14 a (step114). In a preferred embodiment, the control center automaticallydisplays a list of different courses of actions. Alternatively, theowner could activate such a menu by interacting with the user interfaceof the control center. Note that the control center can also be a mobiledevice, such as a cell phone or wireless PDA carried by the owner. Thisallows the network owner to operate from his current location.

The actions displayed to the user may include: defining a knownrelationship between the device 14 a and the network 12 that continuesuntil revoked; denying access; allowing limited access; and allowingfull access. In a preferred embodiment, the known relationship, which ispersistent until revoked, is the “home” relationship. Otherrelationships are also possible, such as a persistent or temporary“guest” relationship. The owner would then select the desiredrelationship between the network and the new device.

If the administrator denies access (step 115) or fails to intervene witha preset time (step 116), the unrecognized device 14 a is denied accessto the network 12 (step 117). Devices that are not currently recognizedwould display a corresponding notification to their users (step 118), orwould operate as if no network existed.

Alternative embodiments include the following: if there is no networkowner intervention, an unrecognized device may be allowed guest access,depending on preset owner preferences. Temporary guest access can beset, according to preferences set by the owner, to allow some limiteduse of the local network by the guest, such as connection to the worldwide web. This connection can be restricted in a number of ways, such astime, bandwidth, or transfer limits. Guest access of this type wouldallow roving devices to be more useful to their owners, in that limitedconnection to the world wide web whenever they were within the area of alocal wireless network would be automatically provided.

One of the possible selections offered to the network administratorwould be to set up a persistent guest access for the device. In thiscase, the device would be registered as a guest device in database 44.This would eliminate future notifications when this guest was detected.In this case, no interaction is required between the device and itsowner.

In a typical network environment such as a home, the notificationprocess described above for the network administrator would beappropriate. However, in high traffic locations, such as a business, aretail store, or an apartment on a busy street, the constantnotifications of momentary connections with passer-bys would betroublesome. In this case, notification can be suppressed—i.e., noaudible or visual indication given. However, the process would still beavailable to establish a home relationship. In this case, the ownerwould simply access the network control center, select the appropriatemenu, and (if more than one guest device was active) select theappropriate device with which to establish a home connection. The devicenotification and interaction described below would be the same.

Referring now to FIG. 2B, assuming that the new device 14 a is a recentpurchase, then the owner will select the menu option that sets thenetwork as “home” for the device (step 120). The server 16 notifies thedevice 14 a that the network 12 is offering a home relationship to thedevice 14 a (step 122). In response to receiving the notification fromthe server 16 of an offered relationship, the device 14 a notifies thedevice user to authorize the relationship (step 124). The device usermay either accept or reject the offer (step 126). The home relationship,if accepted, not only allows access to the network by the device, but,as described below, access to the device by the network. Thus, acceptinghome relationship means allowing access to the device, which requiresuser permission. If the device user rejects the offer, the device 14 ais denied access to the network 12 and the process ends (step 128).Alternatively, guest access is provided in this case, depending onpreferences set by the network administrator.

If the device owner accepts the offer, then the server 16 begins theestablishment of the relationship by storing the device ID 44 that waspreviously transmitted by the device 14 in the owned device database 44(step 130) for future automatic recognition of the device 14 and networkaccess grant. If the device 14 failed to provide a device ID 44, thenthe network 12 generates a device ID 40 for the device 14 and stores thegenerated device ID 40 in the database 44 (step 132).

Referring now to FIG. 2C, the server 16 also generates the ownershiprecord containing information that identifies both the home network 12and the owner of the network (step 134), such as name, address, and soon. In a preferred embodiment, the server 16 then transmits theownership record 50 and any generated device ID 40 over a secureconnection to the device 14 (step 136). In a preferred embodiment, theownership record 50 and any generated device ID 40 are transmitted as anencrypted message that includes a value that changes over time so thatthe message sent to the mobile device 14 is randomized.

Once received, the device 14 parses the message and stores the ownershiprecord 42 and generated device ID 40 to facilitate device recognition ofthe home network (step 138). The device 14 is then granted networkaccess as a home device, based on preference settings and device types(step 140).

When the “home” owned transaction is complete, there is a device ID 40record held by the network 12, and an ownership record 42 held by thedevice 14, to facilitate recognition between the network and the deviceon subsequent detections. The device ID 40 and ownership record 42 canbe in many forms, including serial numbers, user names and otherinformation. The only requirement is that the information providesunique identification of the device 14 and network/owner, respectively.

According to present invention, the “home” relationship where the device14 and network 12 share the same owner, allows automatic functions tooccur, such as data sharing. In the case of a digital camera, forexample, this could mean the automatic downloading of new imagesdiscovered on the storage device in the camera whenever the camera showsup on the network. Likewise, in a business setting, recognized employeeowners can be granted specific access and services depending on theirposition within the organization.

In the preferred embodiment, when an owned device is detected, thenetwork will access a list of known devices, and determine accessautomatically, either from preference “rules” or specific preferencesset for each recognized device. If the owner is recognized as the sameowner as the network, i.e., if the network owns the device, then theaccess granted may include automatic services provided by the network tothe device. Selected automatic services may also be granted to otherknown devices.

The purpose of storing the ownership record 42 within the device is toallow the device 14 to also recognize its home network 12. This isimportant from a security point of view, because the home relationshipmay include not only access to the network 12, but network access to thedevice 14. For example, if the device 14 is a cell phone, and a newphone number has been received by the network from a friend, thisinformation can automatically update the phone list in the cell phone.Or, if the device 14 is a digital camera, the network 12 may interrogatethe camera for new images, and, if found, automatically download them,and even deleting them in the camera, based on preference settings. Thiswould free up camera memory to take additional pictures without the userhaving to specifically download and store the images, and then erasethem manually. Therefore, it is critical that the device recognize thehome network as well as the home network recognize the device. It wouldbe undesirable to grant any network that claims it is the home networkaccess to the device: some form of certification or validation isrequired.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, the ownership record42 may be transmitted to the device 14 even while the owner is travelingand away from the home network 12. In this embodiment, the owner uses anexisting device that belongs to the home network 12 to transfer a copyof the ownership record 42 to the new device 14. The ownership record 14can indicate that ownership is temporary, and when the user returns homewith the new device 14, the home network 12 performs steps above to makethe ownership transfer persistent.

Once the network 12 recognizes the device 14, the ownership record isretrieved or created by the network 12, and transmitted securely to thedevice 14. An alternate embodiment is that a request is sent by thedevice 14 for this information. In either case, the information iscompared to the stored ownership record in the device 14. If thecomparison succeeds, then access to the device 14 resources is grantedto the network 12.

When access is granted to the network 12 or to the device 14, there isno specific requirement to notify the network 12 or device 14 that suchaccess has been granted. In an alternate embodiment, access rightgranting can be signaled to the device 14 and network 12 by transmittingan acknowledgement (ACK) to the provided information, or a negativeacknowledgement (NAK) if the provided information is not verified. Thus,when the network 12 receives and verifies the device 14 ID, it respondswith an ACK, and if no verification is made, a NAK. Likewise, when thedevice 14 receives the ownership record, if it verifies, the device 14responds with an ACK, and if it does not verify, the device 14 respondswith a NAK. In this way, both network 12 and device 14 are aware of theaccess status granted, and preset operations can commence, if they havebeen set up by the user, such as automatically downloading images from adigital camera, for example.

When the ownership transaction is complete, the ownership record 42 isstored in the device 14, and the device ID 40 is stored in the network12. In a preferred environment, public/private encryption is used toestablish ownership, identify an owned device 14 to the network 12 andto revoke ownership status. Although the present invention is describedusing two different sets of public/private keys 46 and 50, one set ofkeys may also be used.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating the network process foridentifying the mobile device 14 once ownership of the device 14 hasbeen established. The process begins when the network server 16 detectsthe presence of a device 14 within the active area of the local network12 using a network protocol discovery process and establishes arestricted connection (step 200). In the preferred embodiment, this is asecure connection. Once the server 16 detects the presence of the device14, the server 16 attempts to recognize the device 14 by requestinginformation from the device 14 (step 202). In response, the device 14transmits the device ID 40 (preferably as a message having a varyingvalue) (step 204). The server 16 receives the device ID 40 and comparesthe device ID record sent by the device with the device ID record storedon the network 12 (step 206). If the device ID record is verified (step208), then the device 14 is recognized and granted full network access(step 210). Alternatively, the type of access for the particular device14 may be specified from a device access control table.

If the device ID record is not verified in step 208, then the device 14is not owned by the network 12 and the server 16 consults a preferencelist for one action to take (step 212). Using the device ID 40, theserver 16 may provide access and services as specified in the deviceaccess control table (214). If the device ID 42 is not found, then guestaccess may be granted, and if guest access is refused, the connection isterminated (216).

As stated above, an acknowledgement or negative acknowledgement responsemay be sent to the device 14 after verifying the device ID (step 218). Asecond cycle of validation occurs when the network, after havingsuccessfully identified the device 14, sends to the device 14 theownership record 42 for validation (step 220). In the preferredembodiment, this is sent over a secure communications channel. Thedevice compares the ownership information sent by the network with theone stored on the device and grants access to its resources by thenetwork 12 if the ownership record verifies (step 222). As stated above,an acknowledgement or negative acknowledgement response may be sent tothe network after comparing the ownership information with the recordstored in the device (step 224).

Once the device 14 is owned, it cannot be owned by another person untilit is returned to an “disowned” status. This process requires both thedevice user and the network administrator/owner to intervene in orderfor such a transaction to occur. For higher security, the disowningprocess requires the home network 12 to release the device 14, withnetwork administrator interaction. This prevents a stolen device frombeing transferred to a new owner without the permission of the trueowner.

In an alternative embodiment, a public/private key pair is used toexchange the product ID record and the ownership record between thenetwork and device. This public/private key can be established duringthe initial ownership transfer process by the home network creating aunique key pair, and sharing one of the keys with the device. In thisway, a secure transmission can take place without the additional processof establishing a normal secure connection—a much more complex process.In this alternate embodiment, a value within the data must change foreach cycle to ensure security. This could be as simple as a counter sentwithin the request, and the same value or related value returned withthe acknowledgement. This prevents a device being fooled by accepting afixed response every time.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating the process for revoking ownershipof the device. The process begins after the device is recognized by thenetwork as described with respect to steps 200-210 of FIG. 3. The userselects an action from the network 12 to remove ownership informationfrom the device 14 (step 300). The server 16 initiates the ownershiprevoking process by initiating a revocation transaction with the device14 by sending a release command using a secure after access both wayshas been established as described above. The device 14 receives therelease command (step 304) and notifies the user of the device of therequest to revoke ownership, and prompts user for action selection (step306). The user either accepts or denies the request (step 308). If theuser denies the request, then the device 14 signals a negativeacknowledgment to the network 12 (step 310), and the network notifiesthe network administrator/owner that the action has been canceled (step312).

If the device user accepts that the action, then the device 14 restoresthe disowned status within the non-volatile memory 34 (step 314). Thismay be done by overwriting the ownership record 42. The device 14 thenacknowledges the release command to complete the transaction (step 316).In response, network 12 removes the device's device ID 40 from the owneddevice database 44 (step 318). Thereafter, the network 12 treats thedevice 14 as an disowned visitor, and closes the network connection(step 320).

In a further embodiment of the second aspect of the present invention,when the owned device 14 is connected to a foreign network, a number ofthings can happen. If the foreign network is connected to the internet,a transaction can take place between the device 14 and its “home”network. This transaction may be as simple as a “request/acknowledge”cycle including the device ID. In the preferred embodiment, thistransaction occurs within a secure connection. In an alternativeembodiment, a public/private key pair is used for this transaction. Thispublic/private key can be established during the initial ownershiptransfer process by the home network creating a unique key pair, andsharing one of the keys with the device. In this way, a securetransmission can take place without the additional process ofestablishing a normal secure connection—a much more complex process. Inthis alternate embodiment, a value within the encrypted data must changefor each cycle to ensure security. This could be as simple as a countersent within the request, and the same value or related value returnedwith the acknowledgement. This prevents a device being fooled byaccepting a fixed response every time.

If the device 14 has been stolen, the home network can return a negativeacknowledgement, causing the device 14 to cease functioning, and remainin that state until direct communication is re-established with the homenetwork. The network address of the device 14 contained within therequest packet can be used to assist in location of the device 14. Aservice can be provided for this, where a central server will take therequest packet provided by the home server, and use it to narrow thelocation of the device 14, and provide this information automatically tolaw enforcement officials. In this way, a device 14 can be renderedinoperative when stolen, and assist in the recovery process.

An alternate embodiment of this invention employs a wired connectionbetween the device and the network. While wired devices are often set atfixed locations, mobile devices may also be connected via a dockingstation (wired or wireless), or by simply plugging a cable from thenetwork or a network computer into them. The same form of interactiondescribed for wireless devices applies to these wired cases as well.

A method and system for transferring device ownership in a wirelessnetwork has been disclosed. The present invention has been described inaccordance with the embodiments shown, and one of ordinary skill in theart will readily recognize that there could be variations to theembodiments, and any variations would be within the spirit and scope ofthe present invention. Accordingly, many modifications may be made byone of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit andscope of the appended claims.

1. A method for device ownership transfer, comprising: receiving anownership record by a mobile device from a network, thereby establishinga home network for the mobile device; sending, when the mobile device isconnected to a foreign network, a request message via the foreignnetwork to the home network as a first portion of a transaction;receiving, from the home network, a negative acknowledgment based on anindication that the mobile device is stolen or lost as a second portionof the transaction; and ceasing a function of the mobile device inresponse to the negative acknowledgment.
 2. The method of claim 1further comprising: periodically altering a value of the acknowledgemessage.
 3. The method of claim 1 further comprising: encrypting thetransaction using public/private key encryption.
 4. The method of claim1 further comprising: receiving access to the home network when themobile device is detected by the home network.
 5. The method of claim 1further comprising: using a network address of the mobile device toassist in determining a location of the mobile device.
 6. The method ofclaim 1 further comprising: storing an initial ownership record thatindicates the mobile device is not owned.
 7. The method of claim 1further comprising: receiving a disowned message after the mobile devicehas been owned through the transfer of the ownership record, wherein themobile device can be owned by another.
 8. The method of claim 1 furthercomprising: establishing direct communication with the home network; andresuming the function of the mobile device in response to the directcommunication with the home network.